1440s

The 1440s was a decade that began on 1 January 1440 and ended on 31 December 1449. It is distinct from the decade known as the 145th decade which began on January 1, 1441 and ended on December 31, 1450.

Events

• The Coptic Church of Ethiopia contacts the Roman Catholic Church for the first time.
• The empire of the Maya breaks up into many little kingdoms.
• The Ottoman Empire starts to become weak.
• The Korean alphabet, the Hangul, is invented.

Births

• King Ivan III of Russia
• King Edward IV of England
• Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII of England
• Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter
• Baeda Maryam of Ethiopia, king in the Solomonid dynasty.

Deaths

• Itzcóatl, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan
• Jan van Eyck, Dutch painter
• Christopher of Bavaria, King of Denmark, Norway and Sweden